Budman Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 How about Corvette Clubs, Mustang Clubs, Hot-Rod Clubs, etc., etc. Invite them out. Treat them special. Let them tour the track for the crowd during intermission. I went to a COBRA show, before a hill country road tour several years ago, put on by an Austin Club. They had 55 Cobras there from all around. (All replicas, of course, but there were some beautiful cars there.) Oh yeah, and Tuner Car Clubs too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbinsSr Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 I remember a couple of years ago they had a run what you brung race during the intermission. that would be pretty cool to get some ricky racer type cars out there or driffter type cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Budman Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Don't know for sure, but I would think there would be safety, liability and insurance issues involved with that sort of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobbinsSr Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Don't know for sure, but I would think there would be safety, liability and insurance issues involved with that sort of thing. Maybe that why they stopped doing it..It wasnt a full race..they lined up 2 cars and coned the track so one ran high and one ran low, they crossed over on the back strait and ran 2 laps. I think they actually called it a spectators race. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Enclosed trailers are hurting the local racing. If all of the cars were going down I-35 on open trailers, there would be a lot more local people that knew about the track. With the cars being inside trailers, the local people do not see all of the cars and therefore less people know about the track. i agree very time i see someone pulling an enclosed trailer I wonder whas in it but the trailers can still have lettering on them with the tracks name. If we all invest just what little it would take to put the name on the cars or trailers it would pay off for everyone. i know i don't want to see thr not be there because then the closest place to run would be houston or corpus and that will get expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jracer98 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 I can remember many, many years ago, I was in a strange town. We had stopped at a resturant to eat before going to the races. We didn't know exactly where the track was. As we were pulling out of the parking lot, along came a truck pulling a sprint car on a open trailer. We literally followed that sprint car for miles, right to the track. I can really relate to that. When I was a little kid we took "driving vacations". When we would stop at little diners and a race car pulled in...bang, I was up from the table and out the door! It could be funny car on an open ramp truck or an oval car that looked like you should get your tetanus shot updated to just look in thru the window sill. I still smile when I pull into a track that has a directional sign that says, <------Race Cars Fan Parking-----> .....and I'm going to the left. Jay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMason Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 I have had quite a few people come up to me and ask questions about my car when I am stopped at a gas station, or getting something to eat... I've even rolled the truck window down many times while stuck in traffic because someone in the car next to me had some questions. where the tracks are at, and when we race, etc. I just can't get over the looks on the kids ( and the dads ) faces when they see a race car on a trailer, they have the same look in their eyes that I've always had " forget the movies, let's go watch that! ". I think I'll have some lettering made up for the car this winter to advertise for the tracks like some of the others are doing, what a great idea! Speaking of following a trailer, I did that about a week and a half ago when I was looking for a track I hadn't been to before, a trailer went by me headed more or less in the right directions so I put the directions to the track away and fell in line behind it. I tagged along behind enclosed trailer right up to the track, then I realized that the small NHRA sticker on the back of it wasn't just a left over from the previous owner. No worries though, as soon as I got turned around and back to the road another trailer was passing by, so I followed it...about another 1/8th to 1/4 mile up the road to the right track! This is a great thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circleburner Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Well , really great ideas from everybody. bu ti believe that the track has to reach ou to corporate help.. i remeber in el paso a few well hell many years ago it seemed that each night was a different corporation night, say Dell, teco westinghouse .etc.. these corps are offered a large group of tickets at a very reasonable rate that they can pass ou tto employees. intermission always had at least 4 company reps in cars racing 10 laps for bragging rights around the company water cooler monday morning and the ceo flags the race start.its a great compant team builder idea...or each division of the corpration assembles ateam for a pit challenge. either way get some of those people to the track.. motor sports is a contagious sport if you can get them there once, alot of them will return. you are going to have races anyway, even if i worked out to 5 dollars a ticket , it would be nice to have 5k people buying concessions rather that 1k at 15.00 per ticket. also local radio station dj challenge is a great way to raise awareness..if every radio station has a driver in a say 10 lap intermission race the for a week every radio station will be talking about thunder hill fo rthe morning shows at least..thats worth a ton of money in free advertising. it boils down to getting people who wouldnt normally come to the track to come.....the gear heads will show..we need some techies....lol cant believe i said that Greg Norton Differential Specialties Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abrungot Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Can you be a gearhead & techy? or is it Techie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FitchRacer07 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Well , really great ideas from everybody. bu ti believe that the track has to reach ou to corporate help.. i remeber in el paso a few well hell many years ago it seemed that each night was a different corporation night, say Dell, teco westinghouse .etc.. these corps are offered a large group of tickets at a very reasonable rate that they can pass ou tto employees. intermission always had at least 4 company reps in cars racing 10 laps for bragging rights around the company water cooler monday morning and the ceo flags the race start.its a great compant team builder idea...or each division of the corpration assembles ateam for a pit challenge. either way get some of those people to the track.. motor sports is a contagious sport if you can get them there once, alot of them will return. you are going to have races anyway, even if i worked out to 5 dollars a ticket , it would be nice to have 5k people buying concessions rather that 1k at 15.00 per ticket. also local radio station dj challenge is a great way to raise awareness..if every radio station has a driver in a say 10 lap intermission race the for a week every radio station will be talking about thunder hill fo rthe morning shows at least..thats worth a ton of money in free advertising. it boils down to getting people who wouldnt normally come to the track to come.....the gear heads will show..we need some techies....lol cant believe i said that Greg Norton Differential Specialties I stated that same idea on another thread, well not the racing part, but having, say a Dell night where employees are half price or free with another admission or something along those lines. Or even a boy scout night or a law enforcement night, ladies night etc. I also talked about giving tickets to the radio station for give aways. I have also thought about some bumper stickers to hand out at different places. But I agree with lower ticket prices. I can't afford to take my whole family to the track, you are looking at 5 adult tickets (2 adults and 3 children ages 13, 15 and 17) $75.00 and 1 child $15.00. That is $90.00 just to get through the gate plus food and drinks and cotton candy and etc. That is a lot for the average family. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abrungot Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Fitchracer How often do you bring the whole family now? If it was $12 (realize there is sales tax in there) how often would you bring the family. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FitchRacer07 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Well I go to the pits and occasionally take the kids in too, but I was just using myself as an example of the average family. But a couple of $$ a person does make a difference. A couple more sodas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tqj3 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 So how much does it cost you to take the family to the movies for two hours of entertainment? Tickets, popcorn, you know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FitchRacer07 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 $8.75 at the most and $6.50 if you go to the matinee. You are going to buy popcorn, and soda anyway plus beer at the track. I do realize that everything is expensive these days, but if you are talking about attracting people price does make a difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tqj3 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 The Cheetah Girls and a separate production of "High School Musical" in Austin two months ago cost more than 25 bucks a head (kids and adults) plus four or five bucks for drinks and such, with T-shirts and other stuff on sale. Both events were jammed, several thousand at each, for 90 minutes or so of entertainment. No one was complaining about the cost. Maybe we just haven't sold our product well enough, or told enough people when and where the events are... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sprintsrule Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 You are not comparing apples to apples. Bring that same show every weekend and see if it continues doing that well at that same price for six months at a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FitchRacer07 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Exactly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racer26 Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Can you go see the Cheetah Girls and a separate production of "High School Musical" every Saturday night for $25?????? Not that anyone would want to but I don't think so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abrungot Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Sprint right with you on that one. This is why "Special events" do so well.. you can't come and see the USAC, or West series on a regular basis. What happenes is the, well i can go next time voice in the head takes over.. because i will only be able to go see johnny play football this week... There needs to be a reason to come each week, ie Special guest events (goes back to the corporate stuff previously mentioned) The other thing is you need to touch enough people that when the longhorns are in town for example and its a dramatic set up.. there are enough people on the "want to go to THR" list that you can still keep the books in the black.. THR is not a non profit... Its a business and for a business they must make money.. It is no secret that many THR "Staff" including the owner nearly work or do work for free... Is this topic enough to change the situation, No.. but it might touch 1 person that could help... There are over 100 drivers out there that with due effort could make a difference.. but like any good band, need to move with 1 purpose, and on the same sheet of music.. because if not... the song and dance SUCKS.. Mary Ann can't hold the barn up much longer, and i think we all know that.. so my hopes with this is there is a barn rasing, and enought man power to keep the farm going... Make sense? Lets keep this going.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston Motorsports Park Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 A lot of great ideas, suggestions and support in this thread. It is this kind of constructive brainstorming and support that leads to action that will make all the difference! I am no rocket scientist but even a dummy like me can appreciate and take note of good, actionable, marketing ideas. lol These are the same types of conversations that Graham, Sarah, and myself have been having several times a week lately. I really makes me want to reach out and do more when I read that majority of our racing family is willing to help. Keep the ideas coming! Thanks, John Mandabach Ps..Arthur, don't discount the effort you have put forward. It is definitely GREATLY appreciated and has done a lot to help our attendance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandersracing Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Arthur helped HMP turn it around with his displays no doubt.John also brought some fresh ideas to upper management.Whatever the reason, the stands were full the last few races. I think it took a lil more than Arthur and his displays. to get the stands full at hmp. like free adm to grand stands and then the discount tickets and cheap conc. not saying he did not do a great job just saying there was more to it then just showing off the cars. but that is a start that sounded a lil harsh there , did not mean it that way just ment there was alot going on at the timr that helped maters out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiTech Posted November 20, 2007 Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 most tracks have one thing in common ..low turnout ..has racen seen its finer days ..and nothing but grim out comes in the future .. yes if we all dont come together and work together .... i suppose its time for the tracks and drivers to close that gap and try and get rid of the me attitude . i for one have to get that part out of me ... me me me me ....... thow some are already doing that ....there has got to be a salution to this ..... someone with the magic potion please come forward ..... ok .... have got to get involed with the communitys ... have bbq cook off chille cook offs ..carnivals . get the media involved ... ... tracks that race every other weekend have room to put on something other than racen .. tracks that dont pick one weekend out of every six and do something other than racen ........ paint a house ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abrungot Posted November 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2007 Oldtimer.. think DW said this... Coop-e-tition?? more important now than ever.. The track owners biggest issue that hinders them is the same thing that has hindered me with JRA... Resources, both $$ and Manpower.. What comes first People to do the work or money to pay the people to do the work? A simple example.. I am working to bring in a "hired gun" for the THR Enduro for the JRA entry... I would love to put $10 grand in my pocket with 100 cars.. its like the lottery.. but i promise you every dime would go back to the kids & central texas racing.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiTech Posted November 21, 2007 Report Share Posted November 21, 2007 Oldtimer.. think DW said this... Coop-e-tition?? more important now than ever.. The track owners biggest issue that hinders them is the same thing that has hindered me with JRA... Resources, both $$ and Manpower.. What comes first People to do the work or money to pay the people to do the work? A simple example.. I am working to bring in a "hired gun" for the THR Enduro for the JRA entry... I would love to put $10 grand in my pocket with 100 cars.. its like the lottery.. but i promise you every dime would go back to the kids & central texas racing.. years ago i use to go out and help the speed way with my spare time ..mostly for free ..sometimes the track paid me something .thier choice .... or bought my lunch ... or let me in free ...thier choice ...the speedways need help . alot is people dont have time or make time to help ..and its has gotten over the years that promoters and drivers purty much went thier seperate ways ..both are hard headed i dont want that to sound way off.. i cant speek for the tracks i dont go to ..the promotors at thunder hill work thier tales off .with help of some drivers and non drivers .. owen at sts ..he has something working over there ..the drivers respect him ..i do and dont race there ....cc .thats going to be something different with new promotors comeing in ..they know racen so we.ll see . i will work with them ...but the bottom line is off season not many of us get those cars out and do anything with them ..the ones that are not being torn down and repared ........ your to be commended and anyone that helps you with JRA i bet it takes alot of your time and resources .... i can tell its for the love of the sport .but more importantly .for the kids ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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